zero-VIS
by Scrap Metal Skeleton
Summary: "The world seemed to stop as the blade whipped across his face and dug into his eyes. There was a brief pause. A moment of realization. Then there was pain." ONESHOT COMPLETE
1. Prologue

**I don't know what a plot bunny is, but I think this is close**

The world seemed to stop as the blade whipped across his face and dug into his eyes. There was a brief pause. A moment of realization. Then there was pain. A loud scream broke from his lungs and pierced like needles the eardrums of anyone within range. The Sun beat down upon him with its warm and sickeningly bright rays of light. It mocked him, but he did not see it. He could not see. He cannot see. He will never see again. It was dark and it was painful and he was scared.

**Maybe it's a plot dust-bunny.**

**Just a prologue, but the rest is all one single chapter so I still consider it a oneshot.**


	2. zero visibility

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"Ch'p'…"

"Chop'r…"

"Chopper!"

"Ngh…I'm here!" he yelled as loud as he could from under the wooden beams and rubble that pinned him down.

"Everyone! He's over here!"

The voice was feminine and the smell of shampoo found its way into the tangled smells of fire and ash.

Nami.

There were sounds of stammering feet then of stone and wood being shoved and thrown.

"Nami!?" he squirmed, "Nami?!"

"It's okay Chopper! I'm here; don't worry! We'll get you out!"

His right ear was ringing. There was an explosion before; his eardrum must have been busted.

"Chopper grab my hand!"

It was Usopp's voice this time. Full of worry and urgency.

He reached an arm out, "Where are you?" He felt his friend's fingers wrap around it and yank him forward and into the smoke-ridden air.

"How did you find me; it's too dark!"

"Oh my God…" Nami gasped, "Chopper…"

"What's wrong? Nami?"

He stood up but stumbled over a piece of debris.

"Ch-Chopper…" Usopp stuttered, "It's…"

"It's broad daylight."

Tobacco and cologne.

Sanji.

"Wh-what? Then…then I…" he brought a hoof up to his face.

Pitch black.

He gingerly touched his shaking hoof to his face and instantly reeled back at his own touch. A warm liquid now rolled down his hoof and dripped onto his lap. He heard his heart pound in his head. The pain was coming back now. A searing lash across the eyes. Cold and hot and stinging and pulling apart.

"I…I can't…" he felt the tears sting in his wounds, "I can't see."

"Chopper…"

"I can't see," he repeated, not believing a word, "I can't see. I can't see. I can't see." He backed up stumbling again over something. Salt. The scent of the ocean caught him. He heard the water and the wind whip at his body. Then a strong arm wrapped around his middle.

Sake and steel.

It was Zoro.

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"Is everyone alright?" Chopper asked from Nami's arms as they set sail, "I…can't really tell."

He'd not said a word since he made the realization. Or maybe he still didn't believe but wanted to wait and maybe he could blink it all away and see again later.

'Don't worry Chopper, everyone is fine; it's…it's you we need to patch up," Nami murmured, "Here," she extended a hand and tapped him, "I'll help you to the infirmary."

Chopper nodded, and allowed her to grab his hand. His eyes were closed tightly. They stung when he blinked so he had decided to keep them closed until they could be tended to.

A door creaked open and he was lead in, heeled shoes followed behind him. Robin had followed them in. Three other pairs of shoes came a stood by the doorway but did not enter.

Sake and smoke and gunpowder.

"I'm going to pick you up and put you of the bed, okay?" Nami asked. She must have bent down to speak to him. Her voice was nearer and he could feel her breath near his face, tiny furs on his snout lightly wavered out of the way.

He nodded again and felt as she tucked her hands under his arms and set him gingerly onto the bed. The sheets were cold against him and the mattress gave gently underneath his weight.

When no one made any move to mend him, he spoke up.

"I can tell you what to do if you tell me the damage," he said his head turned in no particular direction.

"Alright, but you need to open your eyes first," Nami said from right in front of him.

He hesitated, finally admitting to himself how terrified he was to even attempt opening his eyes. He was terrified to have to open them to darkness once more. He took a deep breath and exhaled, opening his eyes slightly and then pulling them apart fully after a moment. It took all of his concentration, and he gritted his teeth in pain.

Someone in the hallway gave a muffled squeak and shifted, their shoes clacked against the floor as they stumbled back and were caught by another, who grunted something inaudible to him. Nami and Robin gave slight muffled gasps.

He felt a sickening feeling in his gut when no one spoke. He was still met with darkness and pain, both which threaten to swallow him completely, and now there was a dark pity that loomed in the air, all directed toward him. He felt it tear a hole in his being.

"Um…everyone?" he piped up.

"I'm sorry Chopper."

"It's okay. How-how are they?"

"They-they've both have got really deep cuts through them, and so does the bridge of your nose."

"And my eyelids? It's hard to feel what's damaged."

"They're fine; your eyes were opened when you were…hit."

"I see-" he froze, "I _understand_," he corrected himself.

He heard Nami back away, probably cringing from his initial choice of words.

"First we—you— need to clean out the wounds," he spoke, his face to the floor.

He suspected she had nodded.

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It had been three days since the incident. Chopper had decided that Nami and Robin had gotten quite skilled at mending his eyes. He knew his way around the Merry and could walk around with ease. When the smell of the ocean became too strong he would keep his distance. The railing would guard him, but there was always caution to be kept. He often felt the eyes of his worried friends watch him from afar. Waiting to leapt to his aid. He'd slept most of the time, wanting his body to focus on healing in hope he could salvage some of his sight when he finally got the bandages off for good. He heard different members of the crew come to visit him, but there was one person who never came in, at least when he was awake, and sometimes he doubted he had even entered the room at all.

Luffy.

He hadn't spoken to Luffy since the day he got hurt.

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"There," she said as she fastened the last of the bandages over his eyes, breaking him from his thoughts. He heard Robin take something to the trashcan and return several of his tools to their places.

"Ah! Make sure you disinfect them first!"

"Of course, Mr. Doctor."

He tensed.

"I'm no doctor," he whispered, his head slinking down into his chest, "I can't even take care of myself. And now," he held his hooves to either side of his head, "I can't take care of you all…Luffy should look for a new doctor…I'm useless to him now."

"Chopper…" Nami pleaded, not believing his words. She threw her arms around him, "Please don't say that! You're our friend no matter what!"

"No!" he broke from her embrace, "I'm useless now! I can't be a doctor if I don't have eyes! If I can't help, I'll just get in the way! You all should just leave me at the next island and be done with it!" He yelled jumping off the bed, transforming into his reindeer form mid-jump and shoving past the others and out the door.

He ran into someone on the stairs, his head ramming into their abdomen.

Soft skin yet firm muscles underneath their clothes. The smell of straw and meat.

"Unf!" They landed at the bottom of the steps in a mess of limbs.

"Chopper?" he spoke. His voice sounded weak, like he hadn't sleep in days.

"Lu-Luffy…" he breathed before tensing up and running off into the men's quarters, hiding under the blanket of his hammock as soon as he reached it.

He heard the distinct voices of the crew above him and their scrambling feet.

Someone asked Luffy where he had gone.

He heard someone open the hatch and someone else run off to the front of the ship.

"Chopper? Hey, Chopper?" It was Ussop.

"Go away!" he yelled back.

"No, Chopper we need to talk," came Nami's voice, "We can't pretend this all didn't happen. We have to be prepared for what happens next."

"What happens next is you find a new doctor!"

"Chopp-"

"I-I just want to be alone right now…"

"But-"

"Just give him some time," Zoro spoke.

Someone sighed.

"I'll be back later. We still need to talk."

With that he heard the hatch close behind them and the footsteps diminish.

He was then left alone in the darkness under his covers. But he could still feel that other darkness that followed him, suffocating his mind and blocking him from the rest of the world he so desperately wanted to see and be part of again. He felt warmth trickle down his face and salt in his mouth. Out of all things today, at least his tear ducks still worked.

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He heard a noise and someone opened the hatch.

"Chopper? Dinner's ready! Come on and eat before Luffy does it for you!"

Sanji again.

He rubbed his eyes and yawned. He must have fallen asleep. He sat up in his hammock and stretched his arms, stopping immediately when he felt something slip off of him and hit the floor. He looked over the rim of his hammock and peered down, remembering he still couldn't see. It was probably dark anyway. He jumped down and sniffed at the object, and then picked it up and moved it around in his palms.

It was Luffy's straw hat.

He felt the small ridges, some straw was broken and stuck out, poking his skin. Some areas smelt faintly of copper. He decided he associated that smell with Luffy more often than he wanted to.

He hugged the hat in silence, feeling wetness in his eyes again.

_Luffy still wanted him_, but Chopper knew the next time his captain was injured, he would not be able to heal him.

But he still didn't want to leave.

Someone opened the hatch again. He hadn't heard their footsteps in warning.

"Chopper?" Nami peeked her head into the room, "I didn't know if you were ready to come out yet, so I brought you something to eat."

He rubbed at his eyes fiercely, forgetting about his injuries and yelping in pain.

"Chopper? Are you alright?" he heard her move to get a better view.

"Uh yeah! I'm fine. I, uh, I'm not hungry. You can just give it to Luffy. I…don't want it to go to waste."

"Chopper…There's another reason I wanted to talk to you…" Nami said, "Do you mind if I come down?"

"O-okay."

He heard the sound of her shoes clacking and then the hatch closed. Her footsteps continued until she sat down on the floor in front of him, setting the plate next to him.

"Chopper, we-none of us want you to leave_. None of us_. We can get past this," she felt her hand wrap around his, "All of us or none of us. That's how it's always going to be."

"I don't want to leave either. But- but my dream…how am I going to see the world? How am I going to cure all illnesses? How am I going to help you all when you're sick or injured? Luffy. He's going to be the pirate king and I have to make sure he's healthy but…" he pointed his face in the direction he assumed she was.

"Chopper, that's the other reason I needed to talk to you."

There was a pause as he waited for her to sort her words out.

"Luffy…he's been pretty…distant since…since the accident."

His eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"Chopper, we need you now, more than ever. Luffy hasn't eaten in three days and I don't think he's been sleeping either. We've all tried to talk to him but…We're all worried."

Chopper's breathing had hitched as she explained and he felt cold sweat down his spine. His heart sank.

_**Luffy blames himself. **_

"He needs you. _We_ need you," she got closer, "Chopper. You're our doctor."

He didn't moved or make a sound, hugging the straw hat tightly.

"No…I'm not."

He heard her flinch at the sound of his voice. He then heard a sigh and she stood and left the room. Above she was met by the rest of the crew. He could her their muffled voices more clearly than ever, the absence of his sight heightening his other senses.

"He still doesn't want to open up to me," Nami's voice sounded tired and upset.

"Let him alone for a little longer. This is just how he deals with things," Zoro said blankly.

"Oh! So I should just sit by nad watch him suffer alone! We're nakama or have you forgotten!? We stick together!"

"I know that! Look. He just needs time. Don't push him. We are here for him when he's ready for us. We can't just force him to feel better."

"But Zoro!"

"I think Zoro's right about this one Nami," Usopp said.

"Pains me to say it but Moss head is right…"

"What's you say?!"

"Calm down, grass head."

Zoro growled.

"Navigator-san, we will give him a little longer. Doctor-san needs to think this through for himself before he is ready to speak to us."

"Alright…" she said, "I'm going to bed," he heard her shoes clack away without another word.

"I have watch tonight. You all should go get some rest," Robin said calmly as she made her way to the crow's nest.

"Right…"

"Let's give Chopper the room for the night, there are some extra blankets in the storage," Sanji said leading the others away.

He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath and gave out a long sigh of relief. He could remove the bandages tonight. Slowly, he peeled off the new gauze and blinked his eyes open. He could hear the faint flicker of a candle. The room was bright he was sure, but he was only met with a pitch blackness.

He felt as though he'd been hiding this entire time.

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He stumbled out the door and into the night air. It was particularly cold that night, hinting at a winter island nearby. Oh, how he'd just love for it to snow and remind him of his home and Doctorine. It was still hard, but he was getting used to getting around without eyes even when not on the familiar areas of the ship. The loss of his sight had only increased his already heightened hearing and his sense of smell was stronger than what he had believed possible.

This was not the first time he had come out during alone to enjoy the night air. Though he was certain at least Robin was aware of his escapades, he did not think that the other members of the crew knew. They'd probably be against him walking around the deck alone for fear of him falling overboard.

He sniffed at the frigid air. Salt and wood filled his nostrils.

He smiled.

It was somewhat nice to be alone after what happened. He loved his nakama and knew that they just want to help him, but even without his eyes, he could tell how they all looked at him. Pity and worry vivid in their eyes. He could feel the tension in the air whenever he walked near them. But not with Luffy. He felt something different when Luffy had been near him even for that one small moment. He couldn't put his hoof on it until Nami had spoken with him.

He heard a noise come from the front of the Merry and stalked toward it curiously.

He approached the figurehead silently and sniffed again.

Straw.

Luffy was sitting on the goat head, looking out into the ocean.

"Luffy?" Chopper said in almost a whisper. His legs shook nervously.

There was a shifting sound, "Oh, Chopper, I didn't hear you." By the sudden softening in his voice, Chopper could tell he had turned his head again toward the sea midsentence.

"Why are you out here?" he cleared his throat.

"I was going to ask you that," Chopper replied.

"I have watch tonight."

"I thought Robin had her turn tonight."

"I took over for her."

"Oh," making a reply only because it seemed necessary that he did.

"Why'd you come out here?"

"Oh! I've come out almost every night since…since I got hurt. I liked the smell of the air at nighttime and the sound of the waves."

"Oh."

"Lu-"

He was caught off guard when Luffy suddenly pulled him up onto his perch.

"I'm sorry Chopper. Are you mad?"

"What?"

"I'm the captain…I'm…supposed to be able to protect my nakama!"

Chopper hadn't noticed his friend was crying until now. Salty tears dripped down onto his fur and into his own eyes. He blinked them away and shook his head.

"It wasn't your fault! Don't…Don't say that! It was my own decision!"

When his captain did not reply he felt the need to continue.

"You may be my captain, but…you're my friend too." He wrapped his arms around his captain, "We're all friends, and we all want to protect each other! I didn't want the pirate king to be blinded! That's why I jumping in front of you! _I didn't want my friend to get hurt!_"he was crying too now, his voice growing hoarse through the tears, his forehead on Luffy's chest, his vest in a vice grip, "And-" he choked, "And even if I can't see, I'll…I'll still be able to go see the world even if not with my eyes! _I will still be the greatest doctor in the world and cure any disease! 'Cause I'm Tony Tony Chopper and I'm a Strawhat Pirate!_"

"Chopper…so you…don't want to leave?"

"N-no! I never wanted to…I just thought…I… I didn't know why you never came to see me…I thought you didn't want me anymore…" he could feel the change in his friend's body. It was screaming for nourishment and rest, "But all this time…you were blaming yourself…all for something that wasn't your fault…You…stupid head!" He jumped from his friend's lap, "What were you thinking?! Starving yourself like this! I'll have to make something up to replenish your strength and don't even think about running off before I make you better!" he pointed a hoof directly between Luffy's eyes.

"Shishishishi~" he heard his friend laugh.

"What's so funny? I'm serious!"

"I'm happy!"

"Happy?"

"Yeah, because I have the best doctor in the world."

"Ah!" Chopper reeled back in shock, "You-you bastard! Saying that...it won't make me happy!" he giggled, dancing in place.

"Heh…looks like he just needed to talk to the right person," Zoro grunted.

Nami sighed, "I'm relieved," she smiled, "We can all finally get past this."

"I think I'll make something special for breakfast. Though it's not very orthodox, I'm sure I can find a way to make cotton candy a breakfast food."

"It seems as though they've fallen asleep," Robin laughed lightly.

"Well, it can't be helped," Zoro said walking toward the front of the ship.

"What do you mean?" Usopp asked.

"We can't have them sleep out here alone," Saanji said gathering some blankets and following, "A night under the stars. Oh Nami-swan, Robin-chawn, I shall keep you both warm with my heart of love. ~"

Nami walked up to the two huddled together on the mast head as the others settled down on the deck and Sanji tried to convince Robin to sleep next to him.

Chopper held Luffy's hat protectively in his arms.

She smiled and threw a blanket over them.

Things really were back to normal.


End file.
